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February 27, 2018

Redfin Housing Demand Index Started 2018 With Its Highest January Reading on Record

More Buyers Toured Homes Than a Year Earlier, but Fewer Made Offers

SEATTLE, Feb. 27, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- (NASDAQ: RDFN) — The Redfin Housing Demand Index began the year strong at 130.5 in January, up 0.5 percent month over month according to Redfin (www.redfin.com), the next-generation real estate brokerage. The seasonally adjusted number of buyers requesting home tours remained unchanged from December to January, while the number making offers increased 1.2 percent. Compared with January 2017, the Demand Index was up 4.8 percent and the number of buyers requesting tours was up 13.7 percent. Meanwhile, the number of buyers making offers slid 9.7 percent year over year.

The Demand Index is based on thousands of Redfin customers requesting home tours and writing offers. A level of 100 represents the historical average for the three-year period from January 2013 to December 2015.

"Inventory has been deteriorating for more than two years, yet 2018 started off with buyer demand stronger than in any previous January we've measured," said Redfin chief economist Nela Richardson. "Along with inventory declines, buyers contended with rising mortgage rates, an overhaul of the tax code and a jumpy stock market. However, strong local labor markets helped keep buyers enthusiastic about homeownership despite headwinds."

January offers and sales were heavily restrained by a 19.9 percent year-over-year decline in inventory, the largest since at least 2014, when we first began tracking the metric for the 15 markets included in the Demand Index. January marked the 32nd consecutive month of declining supply of homes.

Redfin agents report that the effects of the inventory shortage and strong demand are felt most acutely in affordable price ranges, with homes that do get listed selling within days and above asking price.

With mortgage rates and home prices expected to rise and nearly one in five homes already selling above list price in January, buyers contending for a diminishing supply of homes can expect a competitive season ahead.

About Redfin Redfin (www.redfin.com) is the next-generation real estate brokerage, combining its own full-service agents with modern technology to redefine real estate in the consumer's favor. Founded by software engineers, Redfin has the country's #1 brokerage website and offers a host of online tools to consumers, including the Redfin Estimate, the automated home-value estimate with the industry's lowest published error rate for listed homes. Homebuyers and sellers enjoy a full-service, technology-powered experience from Redfin real estate agents, while saving thousands in commissions. Redfin serves more than 80 major metro areas across the U.S. The company has closed more than $50 billion in home sales.

For more information or to contact a local Redfin real estate agent, visit www.redfin.com. To learn about housing market trends and download data, visit the Redfin Data Center. To be added to Redfin's press release distribution list, subscribe here. To view Redfin's press center, click here.